668 VETERINAEY HYGIENE 



Calf flesh possesses a distinctive odour, and soon becomes 

 sour by keeping. 



In the ox the fat should be firm, varying from white to 

 yellow, depending on age, diet, and occasionally on breed. 

 It is whiter in young animals and such as are corn and 

 grass fed ; it is yellower in animals which are fed on cake, 

 and it is naturally a deep yellow in the Jersey and Guernsey 

 breed of cattle ; it is also yellow in old cows. 



In very young animals there may be an absence of fat, 

 the fat area containing a gelatinous tissue ; in the calf the 

 fat resembles tallow. 



The flesh of the horse is darker than that of the ox, and 

 the fibres coarser ; by keeping it soon contracts a sickly 

 odour, and sticks to the fingers. The muscles of the horse 

 contain glycogen, and in doubtful cases this may be looked 

 for, though it would be unnecessary if any definite portion 

 of the skeleton was present for identification. 



To determine the presence of glycogen the suspected 

 muscle must be extracted by boiling for half an hour, and 

 the solution thus obtained cooled ; after cooling dilute 

 nitric acid is added and the solution filtered. To the 

 filtrate is slowly added a saturated, hot, freshly prepared 

 solution of iodine, which is allowed to trickle down the side 

 of the test tube so as not to suddenly mix with the fluid 

 under examination. At the junction of the two liquids a ring 

 of colour, red to violet, is developed if glycogen be present. 



The flesh of the sheep is less florid than that of the ox, 

 and finer in the grain ; the fat is white and very firm. In 

 the ram the flesh is darker and tough. 



The flesh of the goat is darker than that of the sheep, 

 with less fat generally throughout the body, though the 

 lumbar fat is much the same. The flavour and odour of 

 this flesh is characteristic of the animal, and is more 

 evident when it is heated. 



The muscles of the pig are paler than those of herbivora, 

 while the fat is soft and unctuous. 



Meat for the sake of preservation or convenience of trans- 

 port may be salted, frozen, or chilled. 



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